The recent study has also uncovered that coffee consumption could even prevent weight gain.
Researchers at the University of Georgia found that chlorogenic acid (CGA) in coffee could significantly reduce insulin resistance and accumulation of fat in the livers, according to the report which appeared in Pharmaceutical Research.
"Our study expands on this research by looking at the benefits associated with this specific compound, which is found in great abundance in coffee, but also in other fruits and vegetables like apples, pears, tomatoes and blueberries," said the lead author of the paper Yongjie Ma, a postdoctoral research associate in UGA's College of Pharmacy.
To explore the therapeutic effects of CGA on the body, researchers analyzed a group of mice exposed to a particular diet.
The animals were fed a high-fat diet for 15 weeks along with injecting a high dose of CGA solution twice per week.
The results unveiled that CGA was not only effective in preventing weight gain, but it also helped maintain normal blood sugar levels and healthy liver composition.
"CGA is a powerful antioxidant that reduces inflammation," Ma explained.
"A lot of evidence suggests that obesity-related diseases are caused by chronic inflammation, so if we can control that, we can hopefully offset some of the negative effects of excessive weight gain."
The team is planning to conduct more research to develop an improved CGA formulation specifically for human consumption.
Despite the controversies about the health benefits of coffee, a number of studies have shown that drinking coffee in moderation can protect the individual against heart disease and several other health disorders.
Caffeine in coffee can also improve mental and cognitive functions through stimulating many regions of the brain that regulate wakefulness, arousal, mood and concentration.
Consuming two to four cups of the drink per day is linked with lowered risk of heart disease or dying from other causes, including stroke and cancer, by 20 percent.
Drinking more coffee, however, is not associated with additional health benefits.
